Landen Todd 4/24/24 Landen Todd 4/24/24

Gen Z Students disappointed in potential TikTok ban and Income Loss

Andrew Hsu, a business management major at UGA, plays piano outside of Archer Paper Goods in Athens, Georgia, on Friday, April 19, 2024. Hsu has been performing outside of Archer Paper Goods on E. Clayton Street since May 2022 and has amassed a following of over 200,000 users on TikTok by livestreaming and posting clips of his performances. (Photo/Landen Todd)

TikTok creators across the nation are frustrated with the decisions by U.S. Congress because of a potential ban of the popular social media app due to privacy concerns. Some of those creators are in Athens, Georgia, including students who make extra funds using the social media platform.

The U.S. House of Representatives recently passed a bipartisan bill with a final vote of 360-58 that would force ByteDance, TikTok's Chinese parent company, to sell the app. The original bill gave ByteDance only six months to sell, but the timeline for the company to sell was lengthened to nine months, with a possible additional three months if a sale is in progress. Otherwise, the company could face a ban in the U.S., according to the AP. The legislation is passed in the Senate, and President Joe Biden has signed it into law.

Lawmakers who support the ban believe the Chinese-owned app is a security threat. The U.S. government and intelligence officials are worried that the Chinese government could force ByteDance to hand over American user data or change the algorithm of TikTok content to favor China’s interests, according to the AP.

Still, TikTok creators believe this will hurt their First Amendment rights, online communities and businesses who financially depend on the app with more than 170 million users. Local Athens TikTok creators Andrew Hsu and Andrew McKenna argue against the legislation for the potential bill.

“It's basically like the worst thing that can happen if TikTok gets banned here,” Hsu said.

Hsu started streaming on TikTok in the summer of 2022. The 21-year-old, who is a senior majoring in business management at the University of Georgia, currently has over 240,000 followers from going live on the platform and playing the piano in downtown Athens. He tries to edit and post a video daily.

“TikTok gives you a lot of exposure,” Hsu said. “The algorithms work in a way where any video can just start doing really well.”

One of his TikToks that showed him singing and playing “Vienna” by Billy Joel with others went viral with more than a million views. When talking about the potential ban, Hsu expressed his dissent with lawmakers’ decision.

“TikTok is one of the most expressive apps that can get your word out there instantly and one of the most influential ones that people use to express their opinions and ideas,” Hsu said. “So getting it banned is definitely, I feel, a violation of a First Amendment right.”

McKenna, a 19-year-old freshman at UGA, makes relatable skit videos on TikTok for other college students and now has over 216,000 followers. His day-to-day routine includes checking his email to see if sponsors or business inquiries are reaching out while posting a video around 5 p.m. every day.

“I don't really think our security is at any more risk than with Facebook, Instagram, YouTube or anywhere else,” McKenna said.

McKenna agreed with Hsu that TikTok allows for easy exposure, sayings that your follower count doesn’t matter as much compared to other social media platforms.

“It just really gives the ability for you to grow even whenever you're small and I think it kind of takes away some of the barriers to entry,” McKenna said.

Andrew McKenna, TikTok creator, 19, from Warner Robins, Georgia, poses for a portrait at the Zell B. Miller Learning Center in Athens, Georgia, on Tuesday, April 2, 2024. The UGA freshman makes relatable skit videos on TikTok for other college students and now has over 216,000 followers. (Photo/Landen Todd @whats_landophoto)

Gen Z and TikTok empowerment

Sophie Beren is the founder and CEO of The Conversationalist, which is “a website that works to empower members of Gen Z.” According to her, Gen Z, who are frequent users of the app, recognize the downsides and dangers when it comes to privacy and data from TikTok, but she also said a ban is something that could hit their wallets, according to ABC News. TikTok is dominated by Gen Z, with 44.7% of users coming from that age group, according to EMARKETER.

Mckenna said TikTok is how he pays for college and does not have to work any other jobs. On the other hand, Hsu said it’s a side hustle, but he knows people who have made TikTok their livelihood.

Mckenna said it is a main source of revenue and he would have to look elsewhere financially. In addition to financial concerns, McKenna said a lot of users get their news from TikTok.

“I think it'd be interesting how uninformed a lot of people will soon be, especially since the younger generation doesn't use cable TV for their news,” McKenna said. “A lot of people just aren't going to know what's going on in politics.”

TikTok has become a community and financial support for several users. The future of TikTok for American users depends on how ByteDance responds to the bill and the actions of lawmakers.

Landen Todd 4/24/24 Landen Todd 4/24/24

Dueling Southern LGBTQ+ Experiences, Connections and Reflections of Life in Athens

John-Presley Orvin, vice president of Athens Pride and Queer Collective, 27, from Baxley, Georgia, poses for a portrait at Hendershot’s in Athens, Georgia, on Tuesday, Feb. 13, 2024. He has served the APQC board for three years and recently took on the role of vice president in January 2024. (Photo/Landen Todd)

Athens Pride and Queer Collective, APQC, vice president John-Presley Orvin helps lead the LGBTQ+ community in Athens, Georgia. He is 27 years old and was born and raised in Baxley, Georgia, but had a hard time living in a conservative religious setting in southern Georgia as a gay man.

“Growing up in southern Georgia was really hard for me,” Orvin said. “It's always been home, but I wanted to move to somewhere a little more open-minded and liberal.”

22-year-old University of Georgia senior Beck Pirkle says their experience in LGBTQ+ Southern culture was much different.

“I grew up in Midtown Atlanta, so that was a really accepting queer area and so I feel like growing up in this bubble that wasn't really reflective of the broader south, but it was cool because I got to grow up super comfortable and not worry that much about what it would mean to be gay or like having a queer identity in the south,” Pirkle said.

Pirkle, grew up in Midtown, Atlanta before moving to Athens to attend UGA as a Geography and International Affairs major.

Beck Pirkle, UGA student, 22, from Atlanta, Georgia, poses for a portrait at Tate Student Center in Athens, Georgia, on Friday, May 3, 2024. Pirkle, grew up in Midtown, Atlanta, before moving to Athens to attend UGA as a Geography and International Affairs major. (Photo/Landen Todd)

For Orvin community was founded in the city of Athens and has lived in Athens for seven years now.

“I felt like coming from a family or a group of people in southern Georgia, who weren't really on my side, versus now having a community like Athens and knowing so many people who are straight, also a part of the LGBTQ community who loved me just for being the person that I am,” Orvin said. “Gives me a lot more confidence and grit when I go back down to South Georgia to not really care what people think.”

LGBTQ+ Experiences

There are growing challenges for people who identify as or are part of the LGBTQ+ community. LGBTQ+ rights are under attack across the U.S., including Georgia. According to the American Civil Liberties Union, (ACLU), they are tracking 12 anti-LGBTQ bills in Georgia that have at least been introduced. Seven of those are restrictions on student and educator rights.

Meanwhile, a survey from The LGBTQ Institute Southern Survey shows some progress amongst people who identify as part of LGBTQ+ identity. In it, 78% of respondents think their LGBTQ+ identity is something positive in their lives, and 56% consider this identity as important to how they see themselves, according to The LGBTQ Institute Southern Survey. Yet, more than 83% of respondents reported having been subject – a few times or more frequently in their lives – to slurs or jokes because they are, or are perceived to be, LGBTQ+. The 2022 survey is part of a second iteration of the LGBTQ Institute Southern Survey; the first was published in 2018. The 2022 survey was shorter than the original and only slightly increased participation among people of color.

1,326 LGBTQ adults who completed the LGBTQ Institute Southern Survey live in states including Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia and more. In 2017-2018, the LGBTQ Institute at the National Center for Civil and Human Rights partnered with Georgia State University to survey LGBTQ individuals in the South. The LGBTQ Institute worked with 146 nonprofit, community, state and regional organizations to give a voice to LGBTQ Southerners and highlight issues affecting their lives.

Pirkle was happy to hear that most respondents saw their LGBTQ+ identity as something possible.

“That's so awesome,” Pirkle said. “I don't think it surprises me because it does feel really special to be in the South.”

Orvin said he was surprised that 78% of LGBTQ+ Southerners see their identity as something positive.

“I think that we've, as Southern queer people, have come a long way,” he said. It is surprising. I think they were raised in the very similar light that I was raised in it's very conservative and traditional family values and if anyone goes against those values, they're considered wrong”

Orvin’s Experience

Orvin has served the APQC board for three years and recently took on the role of vice president in January 2024. APQC centers its work on helping the Athens LGBTQ+ community by working with historically marginalized communities through outreach, social connection, education, and events.

As vice president of the APQC, Orvin helps plan the Pride Parade held every June and helps give resources to the LGBTQ+ community including a resource fair at The Classic Center which helps with finding safe places for hormone treatments, gender-affirming undergarments, and gender-affirming clothing stores, along with HIV testing..

Orvin said that other resources include helping with youth groups for trans kids to helping parents maintain healthy relationships with their children along with other coping strategies including common stigmas for LGBTQ+ youth, the APQC handles serious issues.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Some LGBTQ+ people have experienced harm and distress caused by people expressing anti-LGBTQ+ views using hate crimes: threats, verbal abuse, vandalism, and violence. As of 2017, fewer than half of US states offered legal protection from discrimination based on sexual orientation.

“It’s not just always a party for us, it's a lot of other things as well,” Orvin said.

Orvin is dedicated to this work and is passionate about the rights of LGBTQ+ youth as it was a struggle for him growing up.

“There were a lot of dark times for me, I thought there was something wrong with me,” He said. “Obviously, I thought that I was in the wrong. I wasn't a good enough Christian because I grew up very religious. I thought that this was just growing up in that it was something that we didn't

talk about, and I didn't know how to navigate it.”

Beck’s Experience

“I'm non-binary and queer,” Pirkle said. “I think it just means that I don't really fit into either the gender binaries and so I kind of exist outside of that category. Part of it is that I don't really know what it means like it's just like a feeling that I have and I kind of just roll with it. It feels good to identify that way and a lot of my friends and family have been super supportive.”

Pirkle said they know they are very fortunate to have the support in a state that is in the south.

“I do wonder about when I graduate from UGA and everyone kind of disperses where I'll end up and how it'll be like adjusting to a new place in the South because I know that I have been really privileged to have this group around me most of my whole life,” Pirkle said.

I really think it's just finding the right people who are willing to love and care on you and might actually have their best interests,” Orvin said. “I know that's hard to find. But in the end that really does help boost that confidence.”

He believes in remaining positive by advocating and educating others to fight against anti-LGBTQ bills.